Religions and cults

[dimreepr]

What is the difference between religion and a cult? Is it simply numbers, or is the difference more fundamental? I.e. is brainwashing a factor?

 

 

[ewmon]

Cults are generally viewed as engaging in one or more of the following behaviors:

• Isolate their followers physically, emotionally, intellectually and socially from the general public
  
• Prohibit their followers from considering alternative perspectives or opinions
  
• Engage in punishments of a physical and/or psychological nature
  
• Involve sexual relationships with the leaders
  
• Require followers to give all their wealth and property to the leaders
  
• Change their ideologies over time from the mild to the bizarre
  
• Demand allegiance to their leaders rather than to their ideologies
  

[dimreepr]

Cults are generally viewed as engaging in one or more of the following behaviors:

• Isolate their followers physically, emotionally, intellectually and socially from the general public
• Prohibit their followers from considering alternative perspectives or opinions
• Engage in punishments of a physical and/or psychological nature
• Involve sexual relationships with the leaders
• Require followers to give all their wealth and property to the leaders
• Change their ideologies over time from the mild to the bizarre
• Demand allegiance to their leaders rather than to their ideologies

 

Sounds very Catholic to me, history shows they have engaged in many of your definitions.

 

 

[Moontanman]

What is the difference between religion and a cult? Is it simply numbers, or is the difference more fundamental? I.e. is brainwashing a factor?

 

 

Generally a cult is a religion that is not widely recognized by other more mainstream religions.... yeah ewmon is technically correct but then that definition would pretty much apply to all religions to some extent wouldn't it?

[imatfaal]

Cults sacrifice their own members, religions sacrifice members of others. Terry Pratchet said it better I will dig out the quote

[Greg H.]

One thing to keep in mind is that cults don't have to be religious. They often are, but technically, a cult is simply the veneration of a person, ideology, or object. If fifty people sat in a circle around me all chanting about how I'm a super cool guy, and everyone should join the circle and idolize me, I'd have my own cult.

 

I don't, for the record. I wouldn't know what to do with fifty brainwashed idiots anyway.

[swansont]

If I belong to it, it's a religion. If you belong to it, it's a cult.

[Greg H.]

If I belong to it, it's a religion. If you belong to it, it's a cult.

 

So if we both belong to the same thing it's a religious cult?

[dimreepr]

One thing to keep in mind is that cults don't have to be religious. They often are, but technically, a cult is simply the veneration of a person, ideology, or object. If fifty people sat in a circle around me all chanting about how I'm a super cool guy, and everyone should join the circle and idolize me, I'd have my own cult.

 

I don't, for the record. I wouldn't know what to do with fifty brainwashed idiots anyway.

 

Good point

 

If I belong to it, it's a religion. If you belong to it, it's a cult.

 

I guess subjectivity does have a lot to do with it, though, given the propensity for psychological manipulation within a lot of cults; it does muddy the waters somewhat.

 

 

Further to the OP, a lot of religions can be said to have started as a cult, so at what point do they become a religion?

 

Good joke btw Greg.

 

 

[Greg H.]

Further to the OP, a lot of religions can be said to have started as a cult, so at what point do they become a religion?

 

I think this is the central question, and my opinion would be mainstream acceptance which is, in and of itself, a subjective measure (what counts as acceptance or mainstream).

 

 

 

[John Cuthber]

I don't see a difference.

[Polednice]

I personally don't think it's helpful to consider "religions" and "cults" as separate entities, but that doesn't mean I think the popular conceptions of "religions" and "cults" are to be considered similar. Instead, given the complex, multi-faceted ways that they both can work, and the extent of the overlap between harmless- and harmfulness of each, I think it simply makes more sense to consider individual structured beliefs in supernatural entities and the harm they cause. With that in mind, many organisations traditionally considered cults would be more benign than some religions, and vice-versa.

Edited May 25, 2012 by Polednice